In our last blog, we spoke about the steps to performing a beauty treatment client consultation. However, we got many questions from students about what to include on a basic client consultation form. So we’ll break it down in this guide for those looking to create a client consultation form for their beauty business.
Client consultation forms are great for Beauty Therapists and Aestheticians to understand their clients better. As mentioned in our previous blog, a beauty client consultation should cover the following:
Aside from aiding the therapist with understanding their client better, a client consultation form is also there to protect the beauty professional. Yes, that’s right! Client consultations may seem tedious and unnecessary, especially if it’s a returning client. But without them on record, you can get into a lot of trouble if anything goes wrong.
You might be wondering, how does a client consultation form protect your beauty salon? If a client claims they were hurt in your care and tries to sue you. Your insurance company will want to see that you completed your due diligence by filling out a client consultation form with both parties’ signatures on the page. The consultation will prove that you asked the client everything you needed to know to carry out the treatment safely. You’d be surprised at the number of clients who might withhold a medical condition from their beauty therapist or aesthetician for fear of not being suitable for the treatment. The signed client consultation form will prove that the therapist did ask about these conditions but was not told about them.
We’d recommend splitting your client consultation form into six sections, which we’ll break down for you now.
This one is pretty straightforward; you want the client’s information details—their name, date of birth, mobile number, email address and potentially their address.
If you need to reach out to the client down the line, consider any contact details you need and put them on your client consultation form. The contact details will also help you build a database for your clients and organise them all efficiently.
Please note that it is essential to safely store your beauty salon’s client consultation forms in line with general data protection regulations. If you would like more information about GDPR and how it will affect your beauty business, we recommend reading this helpful article by Professional Beauty.
Section 2 on your beauty salon consultation form is optional but will help understand how new clients discover your beauty/aesthetic business.
Include questions such as:
These questions help you understand where to focus marketing efforts for further success. For example, you might realise that most of your clients come from Instagram, which justifies your social media budget.
In this section, you also want to follow on from your client’s contact information and understand when you’re allowed to contact them.
Ask clients these kinds of questions:
The marketing section can be moved around anywhere on the form, but for clarity, we recommend following the contact section before moving on to the treatment section.
This section is very straightforward and doesn’t have to be lengthy. For example, you can list all available treatments and let the client tick the ones they are interested in.
Alternatively, you could leave a little section to write out the treatment they are getting. We recommend listing all your available treatments on the consultation form and letting the client tick them off. This method is effective as they might see other therapies that will spark their interest and enquire about new treatments.
Firstly, do they have oily, dry, sensitive or combination skin? Their skin type will determine the products you choose for the treatment. You might complete the section following a skin analysis, as clients sometimes need help understanding their skin type correctly.
Secondly, you want to understand their at-home skincare routine and the products they are already using. Knowing if they are currently using acids, retinol, or laser is crucial, as their skin may be more sensitive.
Finally, you want to comprehend their desired results from the treatment. What is the client looking to achieve by completing this treatment with your beauty services?
Throughout this section, you want to assess your client’s medical history properly. Any possible contraindications should be put on your client consultation form for the client to tick off. Rather than asking the client to write down their health conditions as some conditions may slip their mind or they may feel it is not worth mentioning when it is.
We’ve included an example of such medical history questionnaire down below.
As you can see from the example, you want to be as thorough as possible, as if anything goes wrong, this will ensure you cover all your bases. After this point, you might find the client unsuitable for their desired treatment and discuss alternative options. You can move on to the final section if they have no contraindications.
In this final section, you confirm that the client is of age and has consented to the treatment. Again, you should ensure that everything the client stated throughout the consultation is true.
In addition, you could include an ‘exclusion of liability.’ As the name implies, you have considered all possible outcomes and the primary possibility that the client may break the agreement, excluding you from all liability. An excellent example of this is if you’re a laser therapist and the client isn’t transparent about sun exposure which negatively affects their treatment. You could choose to have a clause stating that if the client were dishonest about any contraindications, you would have an exclusion of liability. This is a basic example of the exclusion of liability, and we recommend seeking legal advice for this part of the beauty consultation form.
Most importantly, you want to get your client’s signature confirming everything discussed in the client consultation and safely store it in your archives. Once completed, you can get your beauty/aesthetic treatment underway.
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